


Stitches

by Resoan



Category: Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: F/M, needle mention
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-10
Updated: 2015-09-10
Packaged: 2018-04-20 03:03:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,167
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4771028
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Resoan/pseuds/Resoan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Solas is burdened with the task of patching up the Inquisitor after their run-in with a dragon, and the pair have a talk about her reckless ways.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Stitches

**Author's Note:**

> Originally written on tumblr for Kitteria.

“Ow!” Judith scowled, the brunette flinching away from the antiseptic as it stung the shallow cut stretching across her cheek. She could see Solas’ expression harden just slightly before he shook his head and glanced away, apparently finished cleaning up that particular wound.

She grimaced further when his fingertips, even as soft and deft as they were, prodded gently at the gash in her side - held together by a poultice until they’d reached one of the Inquisition’s camps. The Northern Hunter had landed mere feet away from where Judith had been hurling gouts of fire from her staff, and even her quick reflexes had been unable to keep her entirely from harm. She didn’t want to think about how much worse it might have been had remnants of a barrier Solas cast around her moments beforehand not lingered.

“I am sorry, but there is no way around it,” Solas informed her quietly, and Judith tensed at his meaning - _stitches_ , and the handful of times she’d received them were never pleasant. “Iron Bull, if you would.” Solas turned his gaze towards the qunari who nodded in understanding, and Cole seemed to materialize at Judith’s side, wide, blue eyes both mesmerizing and a touch unnerving.

Judith had never been one keen on showing weakness, even to those who knew her best, but when Iron Bull returned with a needle that made even his massive hands look small in comparison, she pointedly looked away as one of Cole’s persistently-cold hands wrapped around one of hers. “Just get it over with,” she finally bit out in a huff.

“I will do my best,  _vhenan_ ,” Solas murmured gently, a small flame manifesting in his palm as he took the needle from Iron Bull and began to sterilize it for the unpleasant task ahead. Judith was not quite reassured, however, and Cole’s words, babbling nonsense as though it sounded, were soothing to hear - even Iron Bull’s compassionate frown made her feel just a tiny bit better until she inhaled too sharply and pain made her gasp aloud.

Iron Bull settled at Solas’s side to help steady Judith, but nothing helped once the needle broke the skin. It  _burned_  as readily as the dragon’s talon had when first shearing through her armor and tearing through her skin like paper, and had she been more conscious, she might have worried about breaking Cole’s hand from how he held onto it so. Bull’s grip was tight on her shoulder, and he was forced to pull her back from flinching away half a dozen times before Solas declared he was finished.

Judith had lost count of how many curses had fallen from her lips until Solas spoke those sweet words. “Thank you,” she finally spoke, tongue moistening her lips which had become curiously dry in the past few moments.

“Just rest for now,” Solas told her just a bit sternly, though there was fondness in the crinkle of his eyes. “We will ready supper and a fire for the night.” It was strange to see Crestwood so clear: the first  _week_  they’d arrived, it had been nothing but torrential downpours and near-floods. A few puffs of clouds roved quickly over the inky-black sky, a few stars twinkling near a crescent moon. 

Cole was sent away to retrieve firewood while Iron Bull pitched the tents and Solas disappeared to track some game; Judith watched disinterestedly, almost wishing she had bothered to learn the healing arts from her Keeper - she’d never had the patience though: not for any of it. She’d practically jumped at the chance to attend the Conclave and get away from her clan, and to be honest, she was also perfectly glad to leave her clan in the hands of another Keeper. Now that she knew more of the elves and how garbled the Dalish’s version of them had become, she felt even more justified in her choices.

The night, on the whole, was predictable; a few hares were roasted over the fire, and perhaps it was how much energy she’d expended in her fight with the dragon, but Judith was  _famished_. There was lighthearted conversation, even with Cole probing gently into thoughts and memories, but by now, they were all accustomed to it.

When Bull first stood and yawned exaggeratedly, he practically dragged Cole into the tent with him; her relationship with Solas, while not a secret by any means, was a private one, and she was pleased to have some time alone with him, even if she would have been hard-pressed to say so aloud.

“It was reckless, Inquisitor. You should be more careful - I may not be there to stitch you up next time,” Solas spoke calmly, expression nearly impossible to detect from across the fire where he sat.

“So, what? We wait around for the dragon to descend on Crestwood and kill off what the darkspawn and the mayor’s flood didn’t?  You know I couldn’t wait, Solas - I  _wouldn’t_. It needed to be dealt with, and it has. Isn’t that enough?” Her tone sounded angry, but mostly, she was frustrated.

“And what happens to Corypheus or the remaining rifts if the Inquisitor is killed by a dragon?” His retort was caustic, and Judith found herself glaring just slightly at him. “The safety of these people is important, yes, but so is your continued survival and success. You cannot risk everything for a goal that is not all-encompassing.”

“If you do not fight with every breath you have, then what good is it? I would never expect someone like you to sound so half-hearted when it comes to something like this.” Judith frowned deeply, eyes narrowing as she attempted to cross her arms under her chest, and let out a pained gasp before letting them fall back to her sides.

For a long moment, Judith could feel his probing gaze: not angry or disapproving, but curious and thoughtful. “Perhaps we shall agree to disagree, then,” Solas chuckled with a shake of his head, his hands slipping over his thighs before he stood and strolled over towards her. “For now, I believe it best if you were to sleep - it will help you heal all the faster.”

She nodded as he bent down at her side, his arm slipping gently around her shoulders as he helped her to her feet - though not without earning a few grunts of pain and exertion from her. Judith could not handle most of her weight, though it did not seem to phase Solas as he led her towards their tent and the bedroll where she would be sleeping.

After readjusting the poultice covering her wound, Solas offered her a small smile and kissed her forehead before bidding her a goodnight. As her eyes fluttered closed and she willed sleep to come, she couldn’t quite stifle the thought that it had been a good day, all in all. Her hand sought his out mere moments before she was slumbering, and Solas’ smile grew when he looked over at her.


End file.
